Acceleracers: Stormerz
by Shadow of the Dragons
Summary: They're a gang of homeless girls with a drive to race. From all walks of life, all over the country, all different ethnicities, they live in the slums defending their territory from others. They're bitter rivals, always have been, always will. Two wildly different racing teams who're always up for a race. When Tezla calls them together, this can only mean one thing: trouble!
1. Character Bio's

Stormerz

Q: What is true about a group of girls who grew up on the streets?

A: They are hard core racers.

Meet the Stormerz: a racing group comprised of the toughest girls around. Each one has a tragic past, no formal schooling, and a bad girl attitude. These loveable ruffians are a group of punks with a serious need for speed. And they have no problems showing it. From the roughed up cars to the beat up outfits, these girls are loud and as mean as they come. So why on earth does Tezla want them to race for him?

Leader: Storm

Real Name: Stephanie

Age: 20

Build: Lean-ish, on the skinny side

Hair color: Black with charcoal grey streaks (dyed)

Eye color: Dark grey

Ethnicity: Latino/Asian

Car: Storm Shock

Bio: rough and tumble Storm was kicked out of her home when she was a little girl, and grew up on the streets. Living by doing odd jobs and preforming street acrobatic shows, she barely got enough food and barely got enough sleep. To protect herself, she eventually took to sleeping on ledges, like the rest of the Stormerz.

Second in Command: Electra

Real Name: Emma

Age: 18

Build: Skinny

Hair: Blonde with electric blue streaks

Eyes: Amber

Ethnicity: American/European

Car: Thunder Streak

Bio: Electra was abused as a child, causing her to run away from home when she was a teenager. Used to violence, she will not hesitate to defend herself if she feels threatened. Storm found her on the streets and took her in. she is second in command of the Stormerz.

Driver: Ember

Real Name: Esther

Age: 19

Build: Lean

Hair: Flame red with metallic gold streaks

Eye Color: Red

Ethnicity: Indian

Car: Flame Shark

Bio: fraternal triplet to Oceana and Raina, the only thing this hot head likes better than a fight is a race. With her loud attitude and brash manner of talking, she's tough and she knows it. For her, learning to fight was imperative, as she ran away from home to escape the fate of being a gentlewoman.

Driver: Oceana

Real Name: Orla

Age: 19

Build: Lean

Hair: Black with cobalt blue streaks

Eye Color: Dark Blue

Ethnicity: Indian

Car: Wave Maelstrom

Bio: Along with her identical twin Raina and fraternal triplet Ember, Oceana ran away from home to escape being a gentlewoman. She's the calm one of the group, but when she gets mad, she rages like the waters she was named for. Fiercely protective of her younger siblings, she will not hesitate to defend them.

Driver: Raina

Real Name: Rebecca

Age: 19

Build: Lean

Hair: Black with river blue streaks

Eye color: Dark blue, but she wears ice blue contacts

Ethnicity: Indian

Car: Shadow Hurricane

Bio: escaping from her home along with her triplet sisters, Raina is a somewhat ditzy girl and a peacekeeper. She prefers to drive rather than fight, but will not hesitate to attack if threatened. Despite having little to no experience, she's actually a good cook, and can make even the worst ingredients taste great.

Mechanic: Fallon

Real Name: Faith

Age: 18

Build: Skinny

Hair: Dark Brown with an icy silver streak in her bangs

Eye color: Green

Ethnicity: Native American

Car: Icicle Twister

Bio: Fallon dropped out of school and stayed home to take care of her sick mother. When she died, her step father sold her into slavery. Fallon had none of that, though, and escaped from her captor's house for a life on the streets. Eventually, she walked and hitch hiked all the way from Virginia to southern California, where she was taken in by the Stormerz.

Blizzard

Species: Bengal Tiger

Gender: Female

Age: cub (6 months to two years)

Owner: Storm

Storm rescued Blizzard from a private zoo and raised her on her own. Blizzard is very friendly with the Stormerz, and she will listen to any of them. She won't attack unless someone attacks her, one of the Stormerz, or if she is ordered to. She loves having her chin scratched or being petted.

Disclaimer: I DON'T OWN ACCELERACERS, JUST MY OC'S


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter one:

The two teams are waiting in the ruined section of the city. No one lives here, except for a few unlucky people. It's not time for the race yet, but all are apprehensive. This part of town is dangerous, and not because of the ruined buildings. Several of the homeless and dangerous live here, as well as this being the poplar hang out of several gangs and drug dealers.

On one side of the abandoned parking lot are the Teku. They loved techno, electric music, and favored sleek and classy car designs. They had to look good while driving, and sound good too. All the cars had killer sound systems. There was SpecTyte, driven by the leader Nolo; Chicane, driven by the only girl, Karma; Sling Shot driven by former Street Breed Kurt; Deora II, driven by former Wave Ripper Vert; and Baseline, driven by the mechanic Shirako.

On the other side were the Metal Maniacs. Muscle cars were the way to go with this group, and they favored cars with a more…well used look. And by that, they meant that they need to look like they had crashed at least once. They too listened to music, although not as loudly as the Teku, and they loved Rock n' Roll. Hollowback was driven by the leader, Tork; Spine Buster was driven by former Wave Ripper Markie, nicknamed Wylde; the 70's Plymouth Road Runner was driven by former Scorcher Taro; Rolling Thunder by the mechanic Monkey; and Pork Chop driving Jack Hammer.

Both the groups were looking around uneasily; and for once, Shirako had his music off. They didn't want to attract unnecessary attention. That could be dangerous. So they were quiet, hoping that they would go unnoticed.

However, they already had been detected by a certain someone; who was currently observing the groups from a ruined three story building.

"What're two gangs from the West Side doing over here?" she wondered. "No matter, I better report this." And with that, the girl turned and walked into the building.

She soon entered a room occupied by four other girls, a Bengal tiger cub, and five cars.

"Storm, Ember, Oceana, Raina, Fallon," she said. "We've got company."

"What's up, Electra?" Said a black and grey haired girl from where she was sitting on a pile of rubble, absentmindedly scratching the tiger's chin. The cat seemed to like this, as it purred contentedly.

"Gangs from the West Side, Storm." Electra answered.

"Whaddya mean gangs from the West Side?" a girl with flame red hair demanded. Besides her, a girl with eyes colored icy blue sighed.

"They're probably passing through, Ember. No need ta get worked up about it."

"Maybe, Raina," another girl with a deep blue eyes replied. "But then again, they may be druggies lookin' for their next hit."

"They didn't look like druggies, Oceana." Electra argued. "And they ain't drunk."

"I'd be more worried about the Glacier Gunz right now." Said the last girl as she sawed off another hunk of her brown hair with a knife. "Word has it they're lookin' for new territory."

"I have a feelin' we'll be hearin' from the Gunz soon." Storm said. "Blizzard here apparently smelled 'em on one o' her walks. They're headin' this way fast." She absent mindedly rubbed Blizzard behind the ears, causing the cat to purr again.

Back in the clearing, both the Teku and Metal Maniacs were getting a little uneasy.

"Yo, are these racer's even gonna show, man?" Shirako wondered.

"I hope so." Nolo groused. "We've got better things to do than sitting around here and waiting."

"I thought they were supposed to be here by now!" Wylde snapped.

"They were." Taro muttered shortly. He was extremely bored right now. This was not how he wanted to spend his day, sitting out in the sweltering heat in the abandoned sector of the city, waiting for a group of racers to show, and listening to Wylde to complain.

"Who're you?" the groups both turned around to see a group of five boys standing in the entrance to the parking lot. All were dressed in unkempt, mismatched threadbare clothes. They had smudges of dirt, bruises, and cuts on their bodies, and their hair was ratty and matted with sweat. All carried switch blades in their hands, as well as a few guns.

"The Teku and the Metal Maniacs." Tork said. "Who're you?"

"We're the Glacier Gunz." Said the largest boy, who appeared to be the leader. "What're you doing here?"

"Each of us two teams received a letter telling us to be here today at noon for a race." Vert answered. "We've been waiting here for a few hours, but no one's shown up before you guys. What're you doing here?"

"This is our territory." The leader said. "But since yer not tryin' ta take over it, yer not in any trouble. But ya'll should probably leave soon. We don't like intruders on our territory."

"It's not your territory yet, Gustave! Now you and the rest o' your Gunz oughta scram, before we make ya!"

The Teku and the Metal Maniacs looked behind them to see five figures hidden in the shadows of the building. One stepped into the half-light; revealing a girl of about 19. She too carried a knife, and the glare on her face was directed at the Gunz, and the boy she had called Gustave. However, the rest of her was hidden in the shadows.

"It will be soon, Storm." Gustave said. "Why don'tcha just hand it over without a fight? That way, none o' you'll get hurt."

"Hand over territory? In yer dreams maybe!" Storm snorted. "Look, this is Stormerz territory. Scram!"

"No way! By this time tamarrow, it'll belong ta da Gunz!" Gustave yelled.

"Fine then. Ya wanna rumble?" Storm spit out.

"Yeah. Right here, right now. Whatever weapons we've got on us!" Gustave offered.

"Deal." Storm replied tersely. "But first, let's let those kids go. If they get hurt, we get in trouble. And I don't feel like havin the police come knockin on the Stormerz door!"

"Fair enough." Gustave agreed. He turned to the Teku and the Metal Maniacs. "Ya heard her. Get outta here!"

Shrugging, the drivers climbed into their vehicles and tore out of the parking lot. As soon as they were out of sight, the Stormerz leaped down from the building and attacked. The Glacier Gunz fought back, and the rumble was underway.

….

Soon the Gunz fled in defeat; and the Stormerz regrouped in the building. Several of them were wounded; the worst being Storm, who had taken three bullets in her right shoulder, and another in her left. More scars to add to the list.

The girls began treating the injuries; bandaging cuts, smearing mud on bruises, and digging out bullets using some of their smaller knives.

Oceana awkwardly stitched up a large cut across Storm's back while Electra dug out the four bullets using a knife and her long finger nails. Storm herself was stitching up another cut on her thigh; as well as smearing mud on bruises and a large amount of bee stings she had received when Gustave threw her into a yellow jacket's nest.

Ember was stapling a cut on Raina's shoulder closed; having already treated three other cuts the same way. Raina was splinting Fallon's leg, while the later was prepping metal to cauterize the injury on Storm's back. Soon the leader limped over, and knelt in front of the mechanic. Fallon wasted no time pressing the burning hot metal to her leader's skin, sealing the wound. Storm didn't even flinch, instead digging out another bullet from her leg.

Blizzard walked over and butted her head against Storm, who reached out and petted her. They had pushed back the Gunz for now, but at what cost?

….

The Teku regrouped at a parking lot by the coast road; where a few days earlier, they had raced the Metal Maniacs. It had been a tie, so no winner was declared. That was why the tech focused gang had even bothered to show up at the abandoned sector. They had been itching for a race.

"Excuse me." A flat robotic voice said. The drivers cried out in fear, having been startled out of their thoughts. In front of them was a floating robot. Vert was the first to recover.

"What're you doing here?" he asked.

"Dr. Tezla needs you." The robot stated flatly.

"Oh really, Gig." Kurt snorted. "What about after the world race when we needed him to give us more nitrox? He wouldn't talk to us!"

"Dr. Tezla needed all the fuel for his racers." Gig explained.

"Yeah, but we we're willing to race for him; if it meant passing through the portals and racing on Highway 35 again!" Vert argued.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa." Karma said holding up her hands. "What do you mean portals? And Nitrox? And Highway 35?"

"About two years ago, Tezla recruited 35 racers from around the globe to compete in something called The World Race." Kurt said.

"Yeah, and among them were me and Kurt." Vert added. "The race took place on this inter-dimensional race track built by aliens called Accelerons."

"That's what you call real?" Karma asked skeptically.

"We didn't believe it ourselves when he first told us." Vert said defensively. "We all thought Tezla was a loon. We didn't believe it, until the race began."

"We weren't the only two to see it." Kurt said. "Taro and Wylde went into Highway 35 too."

"That's how you four all knew each other before that showdown." Nolo realized

"Bingo." Vert said. He turned back to Gig. "If you did come here because Tezla needed us, mind telling us why he needs our help?"

"Gelorum and her racing drones have taken the Wheel of Power." Gig mechanically said. Kurt and Vert did a double take.

"Wait, what?" Vert wondered.

"Oh boy, here we go again." Kurt muttered.

….

On the other side of town; the Metal Maniacs regrouped in the warehouse they lived in. most of them were working on their cars; although Monkey was working on a new fuel; and Taro was perusing a car manual.

"Hello."

"AH!" Monkey yelled, jumping backwards from the chemistry set he'd been working with. The other drivers looked up as a floating robot, Gig, flew into the compound.

"What do you want; Gig?" Wylde muttered.

"Dr. Tezla needs you." Gig responded.

"And he needs us why?" Taro wondered.

"Gelorum and her racing Drones haven taken the Wheel of Power." Gig replied.

The Maniacs all exchanged looks with each other. Unlike the Teku, Taro and Wylde had already explained the World Race to their teammates. So they knew the implications of that statement. Tork looked over his team before redirecting his gaze back to the robot.

"When, and where?" he asked.

….

The Stormerz were resting in their base a few days later when Blizzard started growling. The Stormerz all reached for their blades as the five members of the Gunz walked into their hideout.

"Whaddya think yer doin here?" Ember snapped. Tensions between the two gangs had really escalated since the rumble a week ago. Gustave hesitantly took a few steps forward, expecting an attack at any minute.

"I don't like commin here." he said before tossing a black object to Storm, who caught it. "But this old dude told us he'd pay us big money if we delivered this ta you girls."

Storm caught it and began idly examining it. "A hockey puck?" she said in confusion. "Who the heck would send us a hockey puck? Fallon, ya ever seen anything like this?"

The mechanic caught the disc when her leader threw it to her. She examined it for a few seconds before scoffing. "Yeah, in science fiction movies. It's a holographic imaging projector. Whoever sent this must have a whole lotta cash on hand."

"Well, whaddya waitin for? Play it!" Ember shouted.

"Calm down, sis." Raina said.

"She has a point there," Oceana added. Electra rolled her eyes, and Fallon began fiddling around with the device. Finding the on switch, she pressed it and tossed it on the floor. A yellow hologram of a man appeared in the room. Both the Gunz and the Stormerz whistled in appreciation. This was some high class stuff.

"Greetings, Stephanie, Emma, Esther, Orla, Rebecca, and Faith." He said. Each of the Stormerz flinched as he mentioned their real names. "My name is Dr. Peter Tezla, and I have a proposition for you. I want you to come and race for me; in a race that is like no other. A race that will literally determine the fate of the world. I will explain more when you come. Follow the map to reach me." The hologram faded out to be replaced by a map and a set of GPS coordinates. Electra turned to her boss.

"Trap?" She asked.

"Trap." Storm confirmed.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter two

Ten cars split across the desert, heading towards the distant cube shaped building on the horizon. All the Teku and the Metal Maniacs were there; Nolo, Karma, Kurt, Vert, Shirako, Tork, Taro, Pork Chop, Monkey, and Wylde. They had all decided to go see what this Tezla dude had been talking about.

Now they were heading for the race.

….

In the city of wheels, as Palm Beach, California was called, five girls and one tiger were driving out of the city. It was the Stormerz. They, too had decided to heed the call and join the race. As they drove, Storm reflected on the events of the past day.

After the holograph had faded, the Stormerz made an agreement to go to the race. It wasn't like they had a choice; this dude knew their names, and where they lived. If he knew that; then he most likely knew all about their pasts as well. So the girls had no choice. If they didn't go; he might tell someone, and they could get in a whole lot of trouble.

They had made a shaky alliance with the Gunz in the form of a gang bond. Now the boys were watching over the very territory they had tried to take for themselves numerous times. It just dripped with irony. After the matter of territory was settled; the girls had washed in the rain that had started to fall from the sky and left; packing their few belongings in their beat up cars.

They were homeless, rough and tough street savvy racers. And they were ready for anything thrown at them.

….

The ten drivers finally reached the ruined cube shaped building, and parked inside; grateful for the shade it provided. Several of them got out for a better look around. The building was dank and dark, filled with sand; and a few weeds were growing in a couple of places.

"Are you sure this is the place?" Tork asked Taro. He consulted the map, a scary thing in and of itself.

"Yep." He replied.

"Yo, this place gives me the creeps." Shirako said, nervousness creeping into his voice.

"Vert!" the racers turned to see an African man walk out of the shadows, a broad smile on his face. "Kurt, Taro, Markie! It has been a long time."

"The name's Wylde!" Wylde muttered under his breath. Vert grinned and walked over to the man.

"Good to see you again." The surfer replied while giving the man a fist bump.

"Is that Tezla?" Monkey wondered.

"My name is Kadeem, who are you?" the African replied.

"He's just a freaky little Metal Maniac Kadeem." Kurt spit out. The maniacs tensed up, ready for a fight.

"That means he's the best, like me and Taro, huh?" Wylde proclaimed.

"Real drivers are Teku!" Kurt shot back with a glare. A fight was brewing, but Kadeem just laughed.

"Yes, I see how it is." He said knowingly. Vert, eager to diffuse the tension, tried to change the subject.

"So, are we the only ones racing? I would've thought Tezla would've recruited more drivers." The surfer said.

"Well, there was one other group." Kadeem answered. "But it looks like they aren't going to show. In that case, I'll lead you to Tezla. Follow me!"

….

The Stormerz arrived at the cube in the middle of nowhere, and stopped.

"This is the place." Storm said. "So where's everybody at?"

"Look at this, Storm!" Electra called. The gang walked over to see a bunch of tire tracks on the sandy dunes. They snaked off into the distance.

"How'd these get here?" Ember wondered.

"However they did, they're fresh." Fallon said. "Probably made today from the looks of it."

"Think we should follow them?" Raina asked.

"It could be a trap." Oceana reminded them. Storm shrugged.

"Trap or no Trap, I say we follow em. If worst comes ta worst, we can always retrace our steps. Let's go!"

The five girls climbed back into their vehicles and sped off, following the snaking tracks as the cube receded in the distance behind them.

….

"Tezla has built a new headquarters where no one can find him," Kadeem explained as he led the way through a natural rock maze. "Stay behind me and match my speed."

Behind him, the Teku and the Metal Maniacs were driving in a line; with Taro leading the way. He didn't hesitate in his driving; even when Kadeem led them over a cliff and towards a collision course with a mesa. But for a more jumpy Metal Maniac, that was the last straw.

"Whoa!" Monkey yelled as he hit the brakes. "Dead end!" Rolling Thunder spun out and came to a rest on the side of the road. Monkey had just enough time to look up to see Kadeem, Taro, Wylde, and the rest of his teammates make the jump and phase through the rock wall.

"That's impossible." Monkey muttered before the Teku, like the Metal Maniacs, made the jump and also vanished into the seemingly solid rock wall. Monkey groaned, but backed his car up and shifted into forward gear.

"Here it goes." He said nervously before stepping on the gas. He too made the jump, closing his eyes right before the impact. But instead, he found himself in a large cavernous room hewed out from the Mesa. An orange track spiraled around the center, with a jump leading to a hologram of a huge wheel.

The main level was divided into three sections, and staircases led to a cat walk that formed a sub level. A large tower stood near the hologram, and tunnels seemed to lead into other places. It was air conditioned, and was loaded with high tech equipment. Monkey quickly located and drove over to his teammates.

"Did I miss anything?" he asked.

"Not yet, Monkey Man." Pork Chop replied. "Apparently we're supposed to park our cars in this garage and go up to that conference room up there."

….

The Teku and the Maniacs had sat down in the conference room, where another smaller hologram of the Wheel of Power was located.. This confused the drivers, and some of them; including Karma; did not like being confused.

"So, which one is the Wheel of Power?" she asked Kadeem, who was sitting at the end of the table.

"They are both holograms," he said.

"Exact three dimensional recreations." The drivers turned to see a girl come walking into the room with Gig flying behind her.

"Lani! Oh, it's good to see another Wave Ripper." Vert said.

"I'm not driving, Vert." Lani explained. "I've been working with Tezla in the Acceledrome. He didn't tell me who was coming." This remark was made with a pointed glare directed at Taro, who flinched a little at the intensity of it.

"While studying the wheel, Dr. Tezla recorded the unique patterns of its wavelengths and vibrations-" Gig started to explain, but was cut off by Wylde, who leaned back in his seat and put his feet up on the table.

"Yeah, yeah. Scrap the lecture, Gig, we're here to race." He said dismissively. Lani and Kadeem both looked at him funny, but Gig was not to be deterred.

"The hologram resonate with the same emanations as the actual Wheel of Power." He continued.

"Is he speaking English? He's speaking English, right?" Monkey wondered.

"Monkey Man's right. Could you put that in English, please?" Pork Chop asked.

"Yeah, or at least Spanish?" Nolo added.

"In a very real sense, the image is the Wheel." Gig clarified.

"And you couldn't just say that why?" Tork muttered.

"And that means?" Karma said with a question in her voice.

"Dr. Tezla believes that the Wheel of Power has been opening new inter dimensional race courses he calls the Racing Realms." Lani explained.

"And that Gelorum and her drones have been entering them." Gig finished. Taro rolled his eyes and stood up, walking over to the window and observing the compound.

"We must reach the end of the next realm before the racing drones."

"Why should we? Last time it was to get the Wheel for Tezla. What does the doctor want now?" Kurt scoffed.

In another, someone who was listening in on the conversation apparently wasn't too happy about Kurt's comments. He angrily slammed a fist down on the council, disrupting the transmission and turning the screen he was watching to static.

"Dr. Tezla believes that the drones have already accessed several Realms, and with each Realm; they grow more powerful." Kadeem clarified.

"Yo, cool." Shirako murmured, but no one seemed to hear him.

"Now more than ever, we need the best drivers to-"

"It's moving." Taro interrupted Gig as he was beginning the sales pitch. Then the alarms started blaring. Both holograms of the Wheel of Power began turning and gyrating. Lani had walked over to the window and was standing next to Taro. She gave a slight gasp.

"A new Realm is opening!" She said. Wylde had almost fallen asleep with boredom, but sat up with excitement when he heard Lani's announcement.

"Alright! What're we waiting for? C'mon, let's go!" He said before darting out the door. The world race drivers had to chuckle slightly. This behavior was more like the Markie they knew and loved. The rest of the racers looked after Wylde with strange looks on their faces.

"Yo, what's gotten into him?" Shirako asked.

"We need nitrox." Vert said. ….

Down in the compound, the drivers were filling up nitrox tanks in the case of Vert, Kurt, and Taro. As soon as they had finished with their cars, they helped Kadeem and Lani install tanks on the other cars.

"What exactly does this juice do?" Monkey wondered. Taro, who was currently attaching tanks to the bottom of Rolling Thunder, smirked.

"You'll see." He said cryptically.

Tork quickly attached his own set of tanks to the bottom of Hollowback, mirroring what Pork Chop was doing to Jack Hammer.

In one of the other sections, Lani was helping Karma put tanks on Chicane. Kurt was assisting Shirako, while Vert helped Nolo. Soon all of them were ready.

Wylde rolled out from under his car just in time to see the last ring align with the others, and a symbol started glowing. Then with a flash of light; a blue portal appeared in the center. Gig was observing this, and noticed that the sirens had changed in pitch and the gates closing off the track had opened up.

"The Racing Realm is open!" he proclaimed. Almost as if spurred by his words, the drivers started their cars and sped onto the track. Lani rushed up to the control tower while Gig floated a bit more leisurely behind her.

"You must be going 300 mph when you reach the Wheel." Kadeem radioed. The drivers kept looping around the hologram, drawing closer and closer to the wheel. Several of the drivers noticed their speedometers going a little crazy; as they weren't built to handle this much speed.

"I wish somebody would tell us if we're being paid for all this." Monkey muttered. The drivers hit one last burst of speed and reached 300 miles an hour. Then they hit the jump, and leapt through the portal. Lani and Gig watched them go.

"I've got a bad feeling about this." The island girl confided.

"Computers don't have feelings." Gig reminded her.

"We should've told them everything." Lani muttered looking at a clock. It was counting down from 60 minutes. They had one hour to win.

Beep! Beep! Beep!

"An intruder is approaching the Acceledrome!" Gig said with as much alarm a robot could manage. An image was pulled up on the screen; showing six dust trails making their way through the rock maze. "There!"

"We don't have time to worry about them. they'll probably pass by us fairly quickly." Lani replied. "We need to focus on the Realm at hand."

….

The six cars pulled up to a stop at the dead end. Storm got out of her car and looked at the long drop off the cliff.

"Well, the tracks end here." She said. "Looks like they drove off the cliff."

"Why?" Electra asked, moving over to stand by Storm.

"So, do we turn around an' go back?" Oceana wondered aloud.

"Hold up a minute." Fallon replied, peering down at the bottom of the canyon. "There ain't cars down there." The mechanic thought for a moment before picking up a good sized rock and chucking it towards the Mesa. All the girls expected to see it hit the walls and fall to the canyon floor. Instead it phased through the walls.

The girls did a double take, and then Fallon chucked another rock. It to phased through the walls. The Stormerz all looked at each other; then returned to their cars and backed them up. Suddenly the shifted gears and shot forward over the cliff. They too went through the walls, and entered into a hollow chamber in the center of the Mesa.

The six of them looked around in shock.

"Man, this dude sure has money." Ember said in a shocked tone.

"What's that?" Raina wondered; pointing to the hologram in the center of the room.

"The Race. Let's go!" Storm replied. She quickly located an entrance ramp and drove up it, accelerating to 160 mph. the rest of the Stormerz followed her up. Inside the control tower, Lani and Gig noticed that they weren't alone.

"Who are they?" Lani asked.

"They must be the Stormerz." Gig replied. "They must've found their own way here to the Acceledrome." As they watched, the six cars hit the portal and entered the Realm.

**Remember to read and review. As always, I don't own Acceleracers!**


	4. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own Acceleracers!

….

(A few moments ago…)

Inside the Realm, a blue tear in the dimensional fabric was ripped open, and with several flashes of light ten cars appeared in the realm. They were in complete and total free fall.

"Wha- THERE'S NO TRACK!" Wylde yelled.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN THERE'S NO TRACK?" Pork Chop asked.

"I MEAN THERE'S NO TRACK!" Wylde responded.

"What!?" Nolo yelled. Monkey was screaming in fear, while Vert and Shirako gasped when they came through. Kadeem, Karma, Kurt, and Taro were the only calm ones of the group.

Then The first couple of drivers hit the track. They swerved for a few moments before recovering and speeding off down the course.

"There has to be a track! There has to be a track!" Monkey muttered under his breath. Then he hit the track. Breathing a sigh of relief, he sped off after the receding forms of the other cars.

"Does anybody know what is holding this track up?" Kadeem wondered.

"Ask the Accelerons." Taro responded shortly.

"What're Acceleron's, man?" Shirako asked.

"According to Tezla, they're the ones who built Highway 35 and the Racing Realms." Kurt explained.

"What's that up ahead?" Tork questioned. He was referring to a mess of clouds in the distance.

"Looks like we'll find out soon enough. The track leads right to it." Karma muttered.

"Yee-Haw! I love this job!" Pork Chop yelled before laughing like a maniac.

Then the group was in the storm, riding on the edge of the eye. Huge lances of lightning crackled through the center of the storm, and several of the drivers glanced at it apprehensively.

"Oh sweet! This is even cooler than Highway 35!" Vert exclaimed. Kurt rolled his eyes.

"Leave it to the Surf Rat to get all excited over a new race course." He said.

"Whatever, Street Rat." Vert shot back.

"Alright you two, break it up." Nolo said, putting an end to the argument.

The two teams exited the storm and headed towards the next obstacle: a five mile long vertical drop.

….

Back at the beginning of the Realm, six more flashes of light burst through the portal, gradually revealing the six Stormerz. Blizzard immediately poked her head out of the window of Storm's car, and sniffed the air. she growled.

"You smell something, girl?" Storm asked, taking a hand off the wheel to scratch the big cat. Blizzard roared in response.

Electra pulled up next to Storm. "Tell the others that there are other racers in the here with us." She said. "Right now, we'll assume we're on the same side."

"Gotcha boss." Electa replied. She immediately pulled back to let the other drivers know. Storm sighed and shook her head. Sometimes she had no clue how she would survive without her loyal second in command.

"Where are we?" Oceana asked.

"Wherever we are, this place rocks!" Ember yelled.

"Still, we should be careful." Raina reminded her two sisters.

"it sure is stormy here," Fallon murmured to herself before smirking. "Guess we'll fit right in!"

The Stormerz quickly sped down the track and into the hurricane.

"Yeah! Shoot the storm!" Ember yelled. The other ruffians whooped wildly and grinned. Then it was through the eye wall and onto the vertical. They could see several cars down below their own; and one appeared to be falling off the road. All the girls kept their feet firmly planted on the gas pedal. If they knew one thing it was to always keep a foot on the gas in a race.

They bypassed the falling car and zoomed ahead, soon catching up to the group.

Tork was the first to notice the newcomers.

"We've got company!" he announced. The drivers looked in their rearview mirrors to see six very beat up cars. They looked like hard core Metal Maniac cars, put together from a whole lot of parts, dented and rusted, faded paint.

Storm pulled up to Nolo, who was lagging behind the others. The Latino rolled down his window.

"Yo, who're you gu-hey!" he was cut off when a tiger cub poked its head out the window and into his face. The cat sniffed him before giving him a big lick.

"Blizzard!" the cat stopped its friendly assault on the Teku and pulled its head back into the other car, purring contentedly. Nolo sped ahead while trying to wipe the cat slobber off his face.

"They've got a tiger in one of those cars." He muttered in shock.

"Yo, seriously?" Shirako said.

"You sure, Teku?" Taro asked.

"It just tried to give me a bath. I'm pretty sure." Nolo responded heatedly.

Behind them, Monkey's car hit the track with a crash, miraculously landing on its wheels. He peeked up over the dashboard. Before heaving a sigh of relief and straightening up.

"Heh, this track isn't so tough-whoa!" lightning began shooting down from the sky, and the mechanic swerved to avoid it. Vert gasped as the track came alive with the rods lining the road channeling the lightning into electric tendrils the drivers had to dodge. One hit Kurt's window shield, and broke it. It also stopped his car. One of the strange cars spun out and crashed into a lightning rod. All Kurt could see through the glass was a smudged face drawn up in an angry scowl. One of the other cars pulled up to the stopped one, while the rest continued on.

"You okay, Electra?"

"Yeah. Keep goin; I'll be fine."

"Gotcha." The car started up and sped down the track. Kurt tried the keys and found they wouldn't work. He hit the dash in frustration. He wasn't going anywhere anytime soon.

Up ahead, the drivers had driven into a foggy area. But they were not alone. When they emerged, the racing drones were ahead of them. Kadeem somehow had managed to get ahead of them; probably from the jump they had gone over. He scowled.

"Maybe I'll draft with you for a while!" the African said.

Interspersed in the pack, the other racers had their own troubles. Vert went to ram a drone, only to have it glow green and vanish. Vert's momentum carried him over the edge and into space. Noticing there was a track beneath him, he activated his hover jets and landed softly on the track. Above him, the drone reappeared the track and sped off. Vert scowled after it.

Then one of the new cars crashed next to him. Vert couldn't see movement in it, so he walked over and peeked in the car. A figure was slumped against the seat and their eyes were closed. Vert reached in and shook the person gently; whom he could now see was a girl. She groaned and opened her green eyes, focusing on him. Her eyes widened in fear and she hit the gas pedal, zooming off.

Vert stared after her for a second before climbing back into the Deora II and started to follow her. But he was halted by the sight of Kadeem's car floating down by parachute. He must've gotten rammed by a drone.

"I've got you Kadeem!" Vert yelled and activated his grappling hook. It shot out, and looked like it was going to hit its mark. But it was just a tad bit late to catch the rear end of Crazy 8's. up on the upper track, a drone shot a green energy shot at the car and burst the parachute. Then a flash of lightning, and an explosion.

Kadeem was gone. Vert sighed and started up his engine. Kadeem would want him to finish the race.

Back past the foggy area, Kurt and the other strange car had managed to start their engines and were zooming down the track, attempting to catch up.

Monkey was having his own troubles when a drone started tailing him. The it charged up and shot an EMP burst at the jumpy driver. He cried out in fear and tried to outrun the green energy; but it quickly caught up to Rolling Thunder and vaporized it; leaving only the car seat and Monkey.

"well, that wasn't so bad." He murmured to himself. Then the headlights came round the bend. He shrieked and tried to unbuckle his seatbelt. When that failed, he started scooching out of the way. Then the car passed him.

Wylde frowned in confusion as he noticed he was suddenly going a lot slower. The younger Wylde brother looked out the window to see Monkey being pulled along beside his car.

"Climb in!" Wylde yelled.

"Slow down!" Monkey yelled.

"Your seat's causing too much drag! I'm going to scrape you off." Wylde hollered back.

Monkey's face paled. "What? Wait!" he began tugging on his seat belt with a renewed adrenaline fueled vigor, finally getting it to unclasp. He only had time to grab the car before the seat flew out from underneath him. He managed to pull himself into the car, and gave a shaky greeting to his rescuer.

Taro was taking care of drones when lightning struck. He couldn't dodge it fast enough, and a shroud of lightning covered his car. The jolt managed to flip his car end over end before coming to a rest as the shock fried the engine. Taro slumped back against the seat, unconsciousness claiming him.

"I've got Taro. You guys go on ahead." Tork radioed to his team before stopping and rigging the Road Runner to Hollowback. Pork Chop and Monkey waved at him when they passed by their leader.

"Yee-Haw! Let's scrap those drones!" Pork Chop whooped.

Karma and another one of the foreign vehicles ran into a spot of trouble when a drone let out a bunch of mines and detonated them. both the vehicles spun out; although the track didn't blow up.

"Karma! Are you alright?" Kurt asked as he drove by.

"Yeah, go win the race." Karma muttered.

Nolo also was shut down by the drones as the slammed him into a lightning rod. An Shirako's car was shorted out temporarily when he was struck by lightning. The mystery cars didn't seem to be doin much better. They too crashed. Soon it was only Kurt and Vert; and they were tailing the drones.

"I'm making my move as soon as the drones are inside that thing." Vert said, referencing the ball of lightning the track snaked through up ahead. "The lightning should distract it."

"Just make sure you stay focused." Kurt reminded him. "Keep your eyes on your line."

"I can handle it!" Vert said with a touch of annoyance. "Coming up behind us!"

"Don't let them get past!" the two Teku drivers immediately blocked the road, preventing the full sized drone cars from squeezing past them. Things were for once under their control.

Inside one of the drone's car, the robotic pilot was getting a little fed up with the Teku drivers. It pulled out one of the strange card shaped items and inserted it into the car. This time it glowed a different color and went paper thin. Then it drove by the two Teku vehicles, before shifting back into the third dimension.

"What was that?" Vert yelled in disbelief.

"They're going in!" Kurt reminded him. Then they were in the electrical maelstrom.

"Use the nitrox!" Vert shouted and hit the button. Then he was off like a rocket; Kurt following close behind. Things were going well.

Then a bolt of lightning flashed across Vert's car. He flinched and instinctively hit the brakes, coming to a stop just past the lightning storm. Kurt groaned when he saw the mess, but he couldn't get out of the way in time. Sling Shot hit the Deora II and catapulted through the air; coming to a rest on its roof. One wheel fell off, and the axel was cracked. As both the drivers watched, the drones drove through the portal, and vanished.

Slowly, all the lightning stopped flashing, and the thunder faded. The fog cleared up and the hurricane back at the beginning of the track stop turning, and eventually dissipated.

Tork zipped by them; dragging Taro's car behind his. He was closely followed by Wylde and Pork Chop. Then Nolo, Shirako, and Karma pulled up.

"It's over Kurt. Get in." Karma said. Kurt finished pulling himself out from Sling Shot and limped over before getting into Chicane. Then Karma and Shirako drove through the portal.

"C'mon, Vert." Nolo said.

"You go ahead. I'm gonna go get Kadeem." The surfer replied. Then the sounds of motors filled the air. some of the drones were still in the realm, and were coming this way fast. Both drivers paled.

"On second thought, maybe we should leave." Vert said, not without a touch of regret in his voice. Both drivers started their engines and drove towards the portal.

One of the drones shifted into 2-D and sliced through the Deora II before either of the Teku could react. Then one of them managed to grab a hold of the Deora II right before this, and it too was sliced in half. Then the car's momentum carried it through the portal, followed by Nolo.

Vert breathed a sigh of relief when he landed in one piece; although he wasn't happy about losing his car. Then a drone hand smashed through the window and locked around Vert's throat, saying that his head was next. Vert thought fast and pulled the release lever for the hatch. It shot up, launching the drone through the air.

It landed in a heap on the floor, and Vert got out, believing the danger to be over. Then the robot began dragging itself over towards him. Vert scrammed, making a break for the stairs, the drone close behind.

Then Karma rammed it; sending it straight into the wall. She kept her foot firmly planted on the accelerator until the drone's head fell onto the roof and its eyes dimmed. She breathed a sigh of relief before exiting her own car.

"Well-" she started, but was cut off by a series of rapid flashes.

The six mysterious cars flew out of the Realm, landing on the half a drone that came through the portal and had tried to choke Vert. well, if the drone wasn't deactivated before, it certainly was now. Behind them, the Wheel of Power re-rotated back to its original position, closing off the Realm.

Since they were in the light of the Acceledrome instead of the dark haziness of the Realm, the Teku and the Metal Maniacs finally got a good look at the mystery cars.

They were like Maniac cars taken to the extreme. Welded together from a variety of car parts, scratched and dinged paint jobs of different colors was patched on; with a crudely painted logo on the sides. Rust was on some exposed metal, and some of the windows and windshields were broken. A rearview mirror was barely hanging onto one of the cars, and through the holes they could see rips and tears in the upholstery. Some of the safety harnesses were little more than string and duct tape.

If these were the cars, then the drivers had to be in just as bad of a condition. And sure enough, the doors opened and six girls climbed out.

"Man, that was one sweet race." One said.

"More like strange. Where the heck were we?"

"Who knows?"

"This ain't what I thought we were gettin ourselves inta."

"That's fer sure. Ya would think that dude woulda told us ta be prepared fer things like that."

"So, we stayin?"

"Probably seen too much ta go now. We stay."

Then a growl sounded from inside one of the cars, and a black and orange streak rushed out of it and charged Nolo. it tackled him and began licking his face.

"Ugh! Get off of me!" he groused, while the other drivers chuckled at the sight of the skinny Hispanic being playfully attacked by a cat. This alerted the mysterious girls to the other driver's presence, and they turned around. And the Teku and Maniacs finally got a good look at them.

They were an odd looking group; a real motley crew. Their clothing was ripped and stained. Threadbare patches covered some of the holes, while other allowed a view of the skin beneath the dirty fabric. Their hair was ratty and unkempt; badly cut and matted with sweat, blood, and dirt. Skin was bruised and faces were smudged with mud and streaks of dried blood. Fingernails were long and dirt was gathering beneath them.

Open cuts were oozing pus, and leaking blood. More cuts appeared to be awkwardly stitched or stapled shut. A few of them had blackened or bright red blistering burns on their faces; other had bullet holes in their limbs and shoulders. One had her leg in a splint and was leaning on a board fashioned into a rough crutch.

Several of them had rough edged strips of cloth wound around limbs and torsos. Once white, now they were smudged with brown mud and red blood. Some recent, some not. As they watched, one of the girls moved her arm, causing a fresh crimson splotch to appear. Many of them bore scars of old injuries, while other wounds looked recent.

Bags under their eyes showed sleep deprivation. Thin bodies, gaunt faces, and skinny limbs told of hunger and malnourishment. One of the girls had a huge rip in her shirt; and through it the drivers could easily count a section of her ribs. Fever glazed eyes met their own, and the look in them was horrible; like that of a soldier who recovered from a life threatening injury, only to learn that his comrades had died in battle; and then lost the will to live. Pain, misery, suffering, hardship, agony, anger, hatred, sadness, sorrow; all were reflected in their eyes for a moment. Then the emotions were gone; replaced by fear and wariness.

"Blizzard." One of them spoke. She seemed to be in the worst condition of them all. Immediately the cat got off of Nolo's chest and ran back over to sit beside the girl. Now they could see it was a tiger cub that had "attacked" Nolo.

Speaking of the Latino, he sat up, wiping cat slobber off his face for the second time that day. And he asked the all-important question.

"Who are you?"


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own Acceleracers

….

Who are you? Nolo wondered. The drivers looked expectantly at the new girls, who stared back warily. The tiger growled and butted its head against the one girl's leg, who absentmindedly rubbed the back of its head, causing it to purr.

Sensing the girl's hesitancy, Tork spoke up.

"I'm Tork, leader of the Metal Maniacs." The African said. "That's Taro, Wylde, Pork Chop, and Monkey."

Nolo picked up on the other leaders drift and also introduced him and his team. "I'm Nolo, the Teku leader. That's Kurt, Vert, Shirako, and Karma."

Storm glanced at her team, then at the other racers. "My name is Storm." She said. "This is Electra, my second in command; Fallon our mechanic; Ember, Ocean, and Raina."

"How'd you get here?" Pork Chop asked.

"Followed the tire tracks from this old cube ta here." Electra replied.

"Um, not to be rude, but why are you dressed like that? Wouldn't your parents give you something more…clean?" Karma wondered.

The girls looked at each other, then cracked up. But their laughter was not jovial; it was devoid of all humor, as if someone had sucked the joy out of it. A laugh that people laughed when so many bad things had happened it was almost funny. It was humorless, and very rough sounding; like what you would here from a mad scientist on a TV show.

"Parents? Now that's funny." One of them snorted. She had red eyes, so this one was probably Ember. The other drivers stood around awkwardly, until Lani drove up in a car painted like an ambulance. She parked next to Taro's car.

"Let's get everyone to the infirmary that needs it." She called while starting to help Tork transfer the unconscious Maniac to her car. Once that was done, she looked over to see six very dirty girls standing awkwardly nearby.

"My lord," she said in shock. "You six look like you all've been run over by a semi. When was the last time you girls went to the doctor?"

All the drivers looked over at the girls, expecting a quick answer. However, they hesitated.

"When was the last time any o' us went ta see a doctor?" One, either Oceana or Raina asked. The other matching girl shrugged.

"I dunno."

"Well, I was probably the last one ta visit." Another girl – Fallon maybe? – replied thoughtfully. "Lessee, probably bout 9th grade. So…5 ½; 6 years ago?"

"Sounds right." A girl with amber eyes said.

"Then you six had better come to the infirmary with us." Lani said.

"Can Fallon ride in the car?" Storm asked. Lani smiled.

"Of course." Fallon rolled her eyes, but limped over on her crutch and managed to get in the passenger door. Lani walked over to the driver's side.

"The infirmary is down that tunnel and to the left." She said. "I'll meet you all down there." And with that, she got in and drove off.

"You really think we should go ta the infirmary?" Ember asked nervously.

"We ain't got a choice." Storm replied. "And we can't leave Fallon. Let's go." And with that, the five remaining girls trudged off; a few supporting the others, several limping. Nolo and Pork Chop followed them; as they had received a few injuries in the Realm; and Nolo had twisted an ankle when he had been forced into a lightning rod.

The other drivers regrouped.

"We've got to go back for Kadeem!" Vert argued.

"The Storm Realm cannot be reopened." Gig countered. "The Wheel of Power decides which Racing Realm to open and when."

"Great, because one realm is enough for me!" Monkey said.

"Typical Metal Maniac." Kurt scoffed as he limped over. He too had twisted his ankle; although he was to stubborn to go to the infirmary about it. "The Teku aren't afraid to try again."

"Ah, scrap the Teku. Metal Maniacs can do whatever we want! Right, Wylde?"

"Nobody scares Wylde away from a race." Wylde said, for once agreeing with his brother.

"What? You want to go back in there? Look what those drones dudes did to us!" Monkey protested.

"Look what they did to me." The drivers turned to see an unfamiliar greying man on the upper catwalk. Although he was unfamiliar with the drivers; judging from the scowls on Kurt, Wylde, and Vert's faces; he was Tezla.

"We have work to do." Tezla said before walking away.


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own Acceleracers

….

Nolo and Pork Chop walked into the infirmary, noticing how large it was. It could easily fit all of the drivers that were currently racing, along with several others. It appeared that Tezla was planning on recruiting more drivers. Lani and Storm had already managed to get Taro onto one of the cots – how they had no idea – and Lani had already checked his vitals and was putting a brace on his arm. Another was lying on a nearby cot; obviously for his leg. Lani paused from her work as the others came in.

"Nolo, you sit down and get your weight off that ankle. Pork Chop, you hang tight for a moment." She turned to the girls. "Down the hall is a bathroom with showers in it. You six are going to go down there and scrub, and I mean scrub, until your clean enough for me to treat those wounds without risk of infection. I'll get you some clean clothes. Alright?"

"Whatever." Storm muttered before leading her team out of the door.

Lani finished putting the braces on Taro before walking out the door; saying she would be right back after she got some clothes for the girls. On the way out, she passed Kurt, who limped in and plopped down on a bed.

"What're you doing here?" Pork Chop asked.

"I crushed my leg in the Realm after I crashed." Kurt muttered sourly. "And Karma made me come down here."

….

Inside the bathroom, the girls had finally managed to get the showers running and found the soap and stuff. Each one grabbed a bottle of soap, a bottle of conditioner, a bar of soap, and a body of antibacterial body wash; as well as razors and towels. Then they entered the showers.

For a while, all they did was stand there and rinse dirt off. Then they set to work, starting with their hair. As the blood, sweat, and mud ran down the drain, the die jobs they had given themselves a few months ago came to light. Each one of them had a base color with streaks in it. Storm was black with dark storm grey streaks, Electra was blonde with electric blue streaks. Ember was flame red with metallic gold scattered through her hair. Oceana and Raina were black, but Oceana had cobalt blue streaks while Raina had river blue. And Fallon was brown with silver streaks.

After they had finished with the hair, they moved onto their skin. They scrubbed until the dirt and mud that as caked on fell off, until the dried blood ran down their arms, carried away by the water. And then the patchwork of colors appeared; from the blue purple and greens of bruises to the red and browns of bloody cuts and scars, the tan of sunburns, as well as the black and red third degree burns. Some of the skin was still stained brown, having adopted the color of dirt a long while ago.

Then they were all cleaned up, and got out and dried off. Blood from some of the injuries got onto the towels, but the girls didn't worry about that right now. In the main part of the bathroom, they found six simple outfits probably left by Lani. They were a little on the small side, and even though the girls were skinny from malnourishment; they were still a little snug. It wasn't anything special, just T-shirts and jeans, but it was the first time in a while any of the girls had worn new clothes.

When they had finished getting cleaned up, they walked back to the infirmary; where Lani was taking care of Pork Chop's cuts. She finished wrapping the last bandage before looking him over.

"Okay, you're good to go." Lani said. Pork Chop thanked her and left, nodding a greeting to the girls, or the Ladies as he called them. The girls looked at each other in confusion. He couldn't possibly mean them, could he?

"Oh, you look so much better now." Lani said as the girls walked in. Kurt and Nolo looked up at her statement and had to agree. They certainly did look better now. Lani looked them over, then looked at the Teku and then back at the girls.

"Is it okay if I take care of them first?" Lani asked.

"Go ahead." Nolo replied. Lani thanked him, then took Storm into another room. The rest of the girls started poking around the room, when Lani came back out, her face as white as a sheet.

"Are all of you…like Storm?" she asked. The girls looked at each other, before Electra answered.

"Yeah, though ours ain't as bad as hers."

"Bad as what?" Kurt wondered. Ember sighed, and pulled her shirt up a little, before turning around, displaying her lower back.

"She means this." She said. Her back was covered in a mess of scars from bullets, stitched up wounds, and burns. She dropped the cloth back down, and it was hidden again.

"All of us have scars like that." Oceana said. The rest of the dragons rolled up sleeves or pant legs, remaining modest, but still showing off many old wounds. Storm walked back out to join them, her shirt on.

"Ya know where some thread's at?" she asked.

"In the cabinet; with the other medical supplies." Lani said while measuring Fallon for a brace. Storm shrugged, but walked over and began pawing through the cabinet.

"If it's not there, it might be in the other room." Storm shrugged again, before limping into the other room. Then the door opened, and a tiger cub poked its head into the room. It looked around before its gaze fastened on Nolo. It mewed and darted over; then leaped up on the bed next to him and began playfully butting its head against his arm.

"She wants you to pet her." Kurt, Nolo, and Lani looked up as Storm re-entered the room, carrying various medical supplies. She began handing them out to the rest of the girls, the threaded a needle and began sewing a cut close with tiny, somewhat jagged stitches. The other girls also began sewing various cuts closed, with Fallon working on one across the back of Storm's neck.

"Why are you-?" Lani started to ask, but trailed off.

"We've been hurt like this before. All of us know basic first aid." Raina said from where she was examining a cut stapled shut on her sister's shoulder. Meanwhile, Nolo was still looking warily at Blizzard.

"You sure it's okay to pet her?" He asked.

"Yeah, she won't attack ya." Ember said. "Probably…" Nolo paled, and Storm sighed.

"She ain't gonna stop buggin ya til ya pet her." she said. The Latino swallowed nervously, before hesitantly reaching out and scratching the tiger under her chin. To his and Kurt's surprise, Blizzard purred happily, instead of clawing him. Lani, seeing that the girls were doing pretty well for the time being, moved over to examine Kurt's ankle.

The girls finished sewing and bandaging wounds before Lani looked them over and approved of the girls work. But then the islander insisted that the girls stay in the infirmary and rest for a while. The girls immediately started arguing that they were fine and they didn't need to rest; until Lani pointed out the obvious signs of exhaustion.

"Fine. Take five, girls." Storm conceded. The ladies all muttered and grumbled, but they eventually realized they were not going to win against Lani and got into beds. Soon, after much shifting to get a comfortable spot, they fell asleep.

Storm was lying on her stomach as to not aggravate the injuries on her back, and the blanket was down by her feet. Oceana and Raina were on their sides; while Ember was on her back, arms crossed behind her head. Fallon was also on her back, the only one who had bothered crawling under the covers, while Electra had rolled onto her stomach and was drowning out all other noises with the pillow.

Kurt limped out a few moments later on crutches. Lani followed him, Nolo telling her he would catch up as soon as he got the brace on. Finally, after a few bad words in Spanish and a whole lot of tugging, he managed to pull the metal support over his foot. Then he rose to his feet and limped towards the door.

However, he paused at Storm's bedside, and hesitated for a moment. Then he pulled the blanket up so it covered her still form. Blizzard hopped up on Storm's back, then curled up and fell asleep as well. The Latino had to crack a grin at the sight, before limping out the door; shutting the lights off behind him.

….

Whew, another chapter done. As always, please review. Criticism accepted, swear words are not. Even if you don't have an account, just leave me an anonymous review. Your feedback is appreciated and wanted.!


	7. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own Acceleracers!

….

The drivers were gathered in the conference room; and they had one question on their minds. Who were the strange girls? They acted so different, like kids forced to grow up. And they talked as if they had no schooling, dressed as if they had no money. They were grungy, yet they had certain strength to them.

And they had a tiger cub.

"Who the heck has a freakin tiger for a pet?!" Wylde wondered. The other Metal Maniacs shrugged. They had no idea. Then the door opened and Tezla walked in.

"I see you've all gathered here." he said redundantly.

"Who are they?" Kurt asked.

"Who are whom?" Tezla asked.

"Don't play dumb! Who were those girls?" Monkey said. He was pretty ticked about having to stay and race in the Realms.

"This holds all the answers you seek." Tezla replied calmly before handing the small ginger a disc. Then he walked out of the room. Lani looked over the disc.

"It's a portable holographic imaging device." She said. "Think we should play it?"

"Yo, let's." Shirako replied while bobbing his head to the beat of his music. The headphones were always on the Asian Teku's ears, and it was a mystery to the other drivers how he could still hear after listening to loud music 24/7. Lani shrugged and started the device, before tossing it on the floor.

The hologram came to life and revealed six ratty girls and one tiger cub.

"The Stormerz," a voice they recognized as Gig's said. "Are a group of six homeless girls from all around the country who currently reside in Palm Springs, California. They range in ages of 18-20, and they are like a family. The members are the leader, Storm; the second in command, Electra; the mechanic, Fallon; and the triplet sisters Ember, Oceana, and Raina. Along with the girls lives Storm's pet tiger, Blizzard, whom she rescued from an illegal zoo."

The hologram shut off, leaving the drivers with even more questions. Shrugging, the racers eventually noticed the time and trickled out in groups of two's and three's to head for bed.

….

(Dream…)

The modest two story house was on a dimly lit street. The windows of the neighboring houses were dark, and the moon was slowly climbing into the sky. The front walk was lit only by a few small lamps in the gardens that surrounded it.

Then the door opened and a bundle was tossed into the street.

"AND DON"T COME BACK!" a woman yelled before slamming the door. The bundle picked itself off the ground, revealing it to be a young girl. She looked to be about the age of six, with gray eyes and black hair. She ran up to the door and began knocking on it.

"Mommy! Mommy! MOMMY!" she was sobbing now, pounding on the door and calling for her mother. Then a car pulled up and a man in a suit got out. The girl immediately ran over to him and tried to hug him, only for the man to push her away.

"Daddy! Mommy give me owie!" she cried, showing him a bruise forming on her elbow. The man ignored her and walked up to the door, heedless of the sobbing girl trying to get his attention. Finally, before he opened the door, he looked down and took in the child's tear streaked face.

"I don't know you." He said with finality, before easing the door open and shutting it behind him.

The girl stood frozen for a few seconds, then threw herself at the door and began beating upon it.

"I'm your daughter, Daddy!" she wailed. "It's me, Stephanie! MOMMY! DADDY! OPEN UP!"

Stephanie started wailing louder, and hiccupping was soon interspersed. Then the mother yelled through the door.

"Get out of here, ruffian! Before I call the police on you!" the girls head snapped up, and she shook her head, slowly mouthing the words. Then with a look that could break your heart, she ran down the steps and up the front walk; pausing only to pick up a stuffed floppy eared basset hound. Then she ran down the street, sobbing and wailing.

Soon she came to a river; but in her haste she slipped on a stone and fell down the escarpment. She hit the rocks hard before climbing to her feet, one arm bent at a funny angle and bone poking out of it. She stumbled and fell several times as she walked, before coming to a rest underneath a small overhang. She settled down, one hand still clutching her stuffed toy.

"Mommy…" Stephanie whispered before suddenly breaking out in fresh sobs. "I WANT MY MOMMY!" then she collapsed crying. A cold rain began to fall as she slipped into slumber, tears dripping down her face.

….

Nolo gasped and sat up. It took him a few moments to remember where he was and what had happened. Then he groaned and rubbed his head.

"Man, that was some dream." He murmured. The Latino was very confused, though. He had never seen, heard, or read about something like that happening.

….

Storm opened her eyes, being careful not to shift her weight and dislodge the sleeping tiger on her back. She sighed. Again she had had that dream. It was more like reliving one of her worst memories. The day her parents had kicked her out of the house, leaving a little six ear old kindergartener alone with only a stuffed dog for company.

She still had that old toy. It was in her car. Sometimes when she was really sad, she pulled it out from under the center council and gave it a quick hug. Yeah, a little strange, but hey. When you are six and tossed out of your home like trash, you take whatever comfort you can get.

….

(Dream…)

The small trailer was lit from the inside. Yelling could be heard, and two figures seemed to be attacking a third. Yelling could be heard; horrible, horrible things that no one wanted to hear, that could destroy a person from the inside out.

Then sound of a whip was heard, whistling through the air; and a sound of pain as it hit its target. This went on for a long time, until it stopped.

Several moments later, a bruised and bloody girl snuck out the door, a back pack on her shoulder. Looking both ways, she started off down the street.

"So, they think they can beat me, whip me, hurt me, harm me; and I won't do anything to put an end to it? Well, I think I'll just take my leave for now. I'm not sticking with my so called parents. I'm outta here. I hear that California's pretty nice this time of year. Maybe I'll go there…"

And she soon vanished from the street. ….Taro slowly opened his eyes. He had just had the strangest dream, but wasn't sure what had prompted it. Mulling it over for a while, he eventually decided to think about it in the morning. So he closed his eyes and went back to sleep.

'I wonder who that girl was…' he thought just before slipping away.

….

Electra cautiously opened her eyes, as she didn't want to wake the other girls. She had had that dream again, of the night she had run away from home, with nothing but a spare set of clothes, food, water, and a couple hundred bucks. After she had fled, she had taken the midnight train south to Portland, before catching a ride out of Oregon.

Sighing to herself, she rolled back over onto her back and shoved her pillow back over her head, drowning out the sounds of the heart monitor that was beeping steadily in the background.

….

(Dream…)

The large mansion bordered by the woods is all quiet. No sounds at all. Then a window opens and voices can be heard.

"You sure this'll work?"

"It does in movies?"

"But that's fiction!"

"Shh! You want to attract the servants?"

"Quiet, both of you!"

"Yes, Orla."

"Let's go!"

"Calm down, Emma. We've got to take it slow!"

"But if we go to slow, Rebecca, we might get caught!"

"Just toss the rope and let's get out of here while we have the chance!"

A rope made of bed sheets falls out the window, and two girls shimmy down it one at a time. Then the rope is hauled back in, and a third girl jumps out. The others catch her and as one, they run into the trees.

….

Kurt, Shirako, and Tork all woke up simultaneously, although they each didn't know about the other two. They had all had the same dream about three girls hiking away from a mansion in a forest, although they had no clue who the girls were. Thinking about it, all the racers decided to do something about it in the morning.

….

Oceana, Ember, and Raina awoke from their dreams. It had been the time they had run away from their rich model mom and actor father. They had wanted them to go along the same path. Add to the fact that they were royalty, directly descended from the last emperor of India, and you got a mix that called for no fun.

The girls were tired of it. So they had run away. It was so surreal, it was like a movie. Didn't that just drip with irony?

Eventually they all fell back asleep. But not before wondering if their sisters were up; and how the racers would react if they knew that they were related to the rich and famous.

….

(Dream…)

"Faith, your mother is dead." The girl looked up to see her step father in the door. She looked at him with grief filled eyes.

"And…?" she asked tiredly.

"Is she in here?" an unfamiliar man walked in. Faith looked at him.

"Who's he?" she asked. The man slapped her.

"Show some respect, wretch!" he said angrily. Faith cupped a hand around her stinging cheek, and frowned.

"This is your new owner, Faith." Her step father said.

"Owner?" Faith asked confused.

"Yes. I sold you for two thousand dollars. You are to leave here with him and do whatever he says." Her step father walked out, the owner dragging Faith behind him. She didn't like that, and grabbed two chopsticks off the floor.

Chopsticks with a needle point. Senbon. Japanese throwing needles.

She jabbed one into the owner, than chucked the other into her step father. Both men groaned and fell to the floor.

Faith ran out of the house, heading towards an airport in the distance.

….

Wylde rolled over and fell out of bed, the impact waking him up. He growled a couple of intangible words under his breath as the younger Wylde sibling untangled himself from the twisted sheets.

"What the heck was that?" he wondered aloud. He had no clue who that girl Faith, was; where she was from, where she lived, and why she was sold. But he felt a twinge of…sympathy? Yeah, that was it, he felt sorry for the girl.

Growling to himself, he climbed back into bed and rolled over. He was going soft.

….

Fallon woke from the memory of that horrid day when her step father had betrayed her. She was a then, not a girl. And she had hated it. It was a good thing she still had the chloroform tipped senbon from a science project.

Sighing to herself, Fallon reminded her that Faith had died a long time ago. She was Fallon now.


	8. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I don't own Acceleracers.

….

The next morning, the teams all gathered in the conference room. All of them had come up here on behalf of Tezla; who had wanted them to get to know each other a little better. Honestly, that man had trouble seeing the blatant hostility between the Teku and Metal Maniacs. But the two teams did have a few questions for the girls.

"Who are you?"

"How come you were all dirty and roughed up?"

"Why was the concept of parents so funny?"

"What are you really hiding form us?"

Finally, Storm looked at them, fed up with the questions. Might as well tell them.

"We ain't got no homes, and we ain't got no parents." She said. "We're homeless, got that?"

"How come? Don't your parents care about you?" Kurt wondered.

Storm snorted. "My parents…care about me? Yeah right." She laughed a small humorless laugh. "My parents threw me out on the streets when I was six. I hadn't even finished kindergarten. If they cared about me, would they do something like that?"

The drivers looked at her in shock. And then the rest of the girls piped up.

"My mother was a druggie, and my father was a drunk." Electra muttered. "They beat me within an inch o' my life. So I ran away. If they cared, would they have beaten me till I was a bloody mess?"

"Our parents couldn't love us fer who we were." Ember said unhappily.

"Yeah, and they never could find time ta spend with us, either." Oceana added.

"So we took a hike one Saturday night, and never came back." Raina summed up. "If they cared, why didn't they accept us for who we were, instead of deemin us failures til we acted the way they wanted us ta? "

"I dropped out of high school ta take care of my cancerous mother. When she died, my step father sold me ta another man, like I was an object." Fallon spit out. "Why would he care? After all, I'm not even a human being in his eyes!"

"D-did all that really h-happen?" Monkey asked. The other drivers were shocked at the raw hatred the girls had.

"D'ya think we would lie 'bout this?" Storm's anger flared at the Metal Maniac's dumb question.

"Yes, it happened, an' so did a whole lotta others bad things. We ain't no liars when it comes ta our pasts. If ya ask the right questions, we usually give ya the answer!"

Then Tezla walked into the room.

"Stephanie, Emma, Esther, Orla, Rebecca, Faith," he said, not noticing how each girl flinched as he said their names. "Lani's ready to take you into town to get some better fitting clothes. You will have to leave your tiger behind, though."

"Whatever. And our names are Storm, Electra, Ember, Oceana, Raina, and Fallon." Storm muttered under her breath. "It'd be nice if you called us by them."

"Stephanie…" Tezla started.

"It's Storm. Stephanie bit the dust a long time ago." Storm said bitterly before storming out of the room. The rest of the girls started walking out behind her.

"Yo, Ember, does your team even have a name?" Shirako asked over the pounding bass playing on his head phones.

"Yeah, yeah it does." She replied, brushing some of her badly cut red and gold hair out of her eyes as she turned to face the other racers in the room. "We're the Stormerz." And with that, she stalked angrily out of the room.

For a few moments, the drivers just sat there awkwardly staring at each other. Blizzard bounded into the room and over to Nolo, playfully batting his knee with her paw. The Latino absentmindedly scratched the Bengal tiger cub under her chin, causing the cat to purr happily.

The other drivers looked at the cat before dismissing it. It was almost normal to see the tiger cub around, usually with Storm or roaming the halls. The drivers were slowly getting used to her presence, and aside from a few scratches at first, Blizzard was quite friendly. She was however, a little more cautious around Wylde, only approaching him when Storm was nearby.

On the other hand, she seemed to take an immense liking to Nolo. Several times the other Teku had found Blizzard in the Teku garage following the Latino around or jumping up to the hood of his car. You would think that his paint job would be all scratched up, but it wasn't. Nolo really didn't seem to mind her being around, so the others didn't question it.

Eventually, the drivers dispersed to their various tasks. They noticed two cars, both plain and unassuming, being driven out the holographic door. It was probably Lani and the Stormerz.

….

The two cars pulled into Palm Springs, and the Stormerz got out.

"I'm going to go pick up some medical supplies and some food to restock the pantry." Lani said before handing Storm an envelope.

"Tezla is paying all of the drivers for racing for him." She explained. "Your money's in here. He said you'll get more in a few weeks. I've got to run, but I'll meet you all back here in, say, four hours?"

"Sounds good. Thanks, Lani." Electra replied after seeing Storm's nod of approval. The Hawaiian girl smiled and pulled away with a wave. The Stormerz looked at each other before Ember asked the all-important question.

"What now?"

"I think we should get some clothes." Oceana said while tugging down on her too small shirt. "Lani said we could trade in these clothes at a second hand warehouse or somethin."

"We gotta check in on our territory, too" Raina reminded them.

"Why don't we go get some clothes from the Warehouse, then get a small amount of food, then go visit the Gunz and our territory." Fallon suggested.

"Sounds good. Let's go!" Storm said, putting an end to the argument that was brewing. Then she led the way into the city.

….

Soon they arrived at the Warehouse, a massive second hand shop that sold clothes of all kinds. It was cheap, in expensive, and usually had great things in there. The girls walked in through the door, reminiscing about the last time they had been there four years ago. They had finally scraped together enough money to purchase a few sets of new clothes for themselves, replacing the worn out too tight smaller ones they wore now.

Sighing to themselves as they recalled the bad old days, the girls walked in and paused in the entrance.

"Remember. Utilitarian, dark colors, an good quality." Storm said. "Get at least three sets of clothes, and try not ta get anything frilly or flashy. Alright? Meet back here in thirty minutes."

With that, the Stormerz dispersed to the various sections of the massive second hand clothes shop, and began eyeing up the clothes. Pulling a few that they liked, they drifted off to the changing rooms to try them on.

The girls also eyed up the jewelry and cosmetics. The ones they had were so old, it was a miracle they still worked and weren't spoiled. Finally selecting their purchases, they met back up at the doors to determine approximate pricing. 100 dollars; but for 18 outfits and some accessories, it wasn't a bad deal.

"Well," Electra said. "Let's see how much we got paid."

Storm took out the envelope and opened it up. Inside was a wad of bills and a note saying that they had…

"Six million dollars?!" Ember whispered with excitement. All of the other girls looked at each other, than counted up the stacks of twenty dollar bills. Eventually they gave up when Fallon pointed out that there would be to many to count, that they should just accept what the note said and that each stack held one thousand dollars.

"Let's go pay!" Oceana suggested. The six girls walked up to the register, where a pleasant woman soon rang up their purchase and exchanged the clothes for $97.56. The Stormerz thanked her and walked out.

"Time ta visit the Gunz." Raina reminded the rest of the team.

"Yeah, let's go." Fallon said.

"Hold up, Stormerz," Storm called. "I've got an idea."


	9. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Acceleracers**

* * *

The girls met up at their territory after a quick trip around the East side's abandoned sector. As Storm was running towards the broken down hotel skyscraper the gang had lived in for several years, she reflected on how the city had ended up like this.

Palm Springs, California. It was once a thriving town that had rivaled LA, Chicago, and New York City in both size and population. But then there was a disaster.

An earthquake from the San Antonio Fault Line had struck the town, and destroyed parts of it. Most heavily hit was the East side, with several damages and deaths. That divided the town.

The city officials deemed the east side a total loss and slated it for demolition, but never got around to it. Eventually they just decided to leave it as it was, and abandoned it, focusing on repairing the less damaged West side. Soon they brought it back to its former glory.

Here lived the privileged, the ones with money. They had houses and cars, running water and electricity, heat and air conditioning. Toys, books, games, TV's, electronics, computers were the constant companions of the people who lived here. Largely, they tried to ignore the east side and it's many problems.

On the other side of the barely standing chain and barbed wire fence was the ruined east side, a shell of its former glory. Buildings were collapsed or leaning precariously, parts of the walls and floors and ceilings broken off. Some parts of the street had collapsed, exposing the subway tunnels. Trolley lines were rusting, and broken power lines and wrecked vehicles abounded. Weeds and grass grew up tall, and a cold wind constantly seemed to whistle through the area.

Here lived the poor and downtrodden; the gangs and the drug dealers; the homeless and the runaways. The people that worried about whether they would eat tonight. The addicts and the victims of abuse. All the pain of the city seemed to be concentrated here. Very few of the people from the West Side helped the people who lived here.

The West side was broken down into three sectors by the people who lived there. The first sector was the Habitat, the place deemed by many the suitable area to live. It was also the biggest, encompassing many many square miles. The community was comprised mostly of gangs of teenagers and young adults, homeless people who lived in groups. The Habitat was divided into three zones: The Canopy (Rooftops and floors above the sixth story), the Floor (Streets and floors 1-5), and the Tunnels (Subway tunnels and basement floors).

The second sector was the Wilderness. Here the damage was greater, and more plants grew here among the ruined buildings. It was a hard place to live, and few did. The handful of people who did chose to make their homes here had a much harder time living, but also enjoyed less violence and a greater degree of privacy. The Wilderness was a frequent spot for multi-gang rumbles, as well as practicing for techniques like parkour and martial arts. It was a frequent hangout for daredevils and adrenaline junkies.

The last sector was the Badlands. There was even more damage here than in the other two sectors combined, as it had been right near the epicenter of the quake. It too was divided into three zones; the Graveyard (where the dead were buried), the Rocks (Where the Gang Summits took place), and the Torrent (where the largest supply of water to be found on the East Side was located). No on lived in the Badlands, as all three areas were common territory for all, and considered a demilitarized zone. Rumbles were not allowed in the Badlands, one of the few rules that compromised the Gang code, which was a set of rules that all gangs followed.

No one lived in the Badlands, but several gangs lived in the Wilderness and the Habitat. So the girls had scattered throughout the dystopian cityscape, executing their orders. Storm had also gone, and was now heading back after making her rounds. She smiled to herself. The other gangs were certainly in for a surprise. ….

Eventually the six girls walked into their territory and was met by a surprise. All six Gunz were waiting for them, and they all had several cuts and bruises.

"Rumble?" Electra asked.

"Yeah. We lost all our territory." Gustave said angrily. "But we didn't lose any of yours…you ain't mad, right?"

"Why would we be mad?" Fallon wondered. Gregory, the Gunz mechanic, spoke up.

"We've kinda been livin here for da past few weeks." He said hesitantly.

"That's fine with us." Storm reassured him. "And we've got something fer ya that might cheer ya up!" and with that, she handed him five stacks of bills.

"We're getting paid a lot fer bein in this race." Ember explained.

"That's fer ya an yer crew. A thousand bucks each." Oceana added. The Gunz were speechless as Gustave divvied up the money. The groups made small talk for a while, until Gustave asked a question.

"Are you going to the Summit tonight?" he asked.

"Probably," Storm answered. "We told Lani that we'd meet her back in a couplea hours, but we might just lose track of time, cause we forgot to buy watches. And we ain't heading back to the race til tamarrow anyway. So, yeah, we are."

The rest of the Stormerz and the Gunz cracked up at her statement, their laughter ringing through the buildings. ….

Later that night, Lani was pacing around the square. The Stormerz were supposed to have met up with her a thirty minutes ago, and yet they were nowhere to be found. Sighing to herself, she turned around…

Only to bump into someone. It was a young boy dressed in grungy clothes, similar to how the Stormerz were dressed at first when they had arrived.

"Excuse me," she said. "Have you seen a group of six girls around, ages 18-20?"

"Can ya describe em ta me?" he asked.

"Um, let's see. One of them is kind of tall, with choppily cut black hair with dark grey streaks in it, and grey eyes…" she was interrupted when recognition dawned on the kids face.

"Oh, yer talkin bout Storm an her crew, right?" Lani nodded, so the boy continued on excitedly. "I ain't seen em fer several weeks, an rumor's goin round dat they went off ta some hotshot race. But if they're in town, they'll probably be at da Summit tonight!"

"Um…Okay? Thanks!" The islander said, wondering what a Summit was. They boy grinned sheepishly, said don't mention it, and ran off, heading for the abandoned part of the city.

….

Later, as the sky grew dark and the stars started to travel out, Lani could hear singing coming from the abandoned part of the city. Frowning, she walked out into the street from the hotel room she was staying in.

"What is that?" She wondered aloud.

"It's the Summit, child." Lani turned to see a woman in the streets, dressed like a nun.

"The Summit?" Lani asked confused.

"Yes…" the woman replied. "Every two weeks, on the night of the full moon and the half moon, all the gangs from the abandoned part of the city gather for a night of fun and laughter." She smiled wistfully, and continued on her way.

"Wait! How do I get to the Summit?" Lani called after her.

"Follow the music and the light. They will lead you to it." The nun replied before turning down a side street.

Lani shrugged then headed off in the direction of the noise.

….

The Stormerz were running a little late to get to the Summit, so they were among the last to arrive.

"Hey! It's the Stormerz!" One of the boys, a member of the Dracos shouted. The girls were immediately swarmed by the other gang members.

"Yo, we heard dat yer racin in a big hotshot competition? Dat true?" a girl called out.

"Yeah, it is." Storm answered.

"Well, ya can't go lookin like that!" another girl, the leader if the Beautyz shouted. "Let's get this thing on!" and with that, the gangs swarmed the Stormerz and dragged them into the crowd.

"Ya gotta show a little area pride!" A member of the Flyboys said as he removed the jacket Storm was wearing.

"Yeah, so we're givin ya six a whole makeover!" a member of the Prancers squealed.

"Gustave already told us dat ya were da ones who put dat money in our hideouts," the Tempests leader explained. "So this is our way o' thankin ya all fer it!"

The girls were stunned and shocked, yet not at all surprised as the usually enemies worked as one to transform the girls. First, the girls were each given a robe to change into, and then were told to hand over their clothes and knives. They did so, knowing that they were outnumbered, and then they were whisked away.

"LOOK AT THIS HAIR!" one of the Beautyz shrieked, holding a few clumps of Ember's red and gold mane in her hand. "We simply MUST do something about this." And with that, the rest of the Beautyz dragged the girls over to a rock, where they sat them down and began working on their hair, refreshing the dye jobs in them.

Meanwhile, a guild of engravers and a guild of knifers were working on the Stormerz weapons, sharpening and polishing them, as well as engraving and reforging the blades. The clang of rock against metal could be heard ringing out above the chatter.

A few of the other gangs had managed to get a hold of the clothing, and were adding things to that, laughing at jokes and singing songs to each other, in a kind of call and response game.

Eventually, the Stormerz were given their clothes, and told to change, then close their eyes. They complied, knowing that the other homeless had something in store for them. Eventually, they came out from the rock they had changed behind. The Beautyz immediately descended on them and started their work, ignoring the protests the Stormerz made to not put on the makeup too heavy. Other girls began working on the hair, and several of the boys laughed at the expressions on their captives' faces. Still others began singing and dancing, or beating on rocks with sticks.

Such was the normality of the situation. Summits were always filled with this; as they were like a party. Separated from the rest of the city by boundaries, it was almost like the East Side was a whole other country, rather than part of the city. And this reflected in the culture of the area. The residents had their own language, dubbed Eastish, that was comprised of English and several slang terms. The residents were known as Easties, and they spoke with a distinctive rough accent and manner. And a big part of their lives were music, the arts, and dancing. Often times, it was how they expressed themselves. Which was why it was such a big part of the Gang Summits.

"Okay, we're all done." The Beautyz leader, a Brazilian named Belinda exclaimed.

"Well, what're ya waitin for?" a Tempests named Tiera squealed. "Take a look!"

"Alright, alright, give us a sec." Raina laughed, allowing herself and the other Stormerz to be dragged over to the reflecting pool; a puddle of water that was clear and glasslike, named for the fact that it reflected objects like a mirror. The girls looked at each other before gasping at their reflections. They were shocked at the transformation the other gangs could work in such a short time.

"Wow…" Oceana started before trailing off.

"Aww, ya guys…" Ember sniffed, pretending to wipe away a tear.

"Thanks!" Fallon exclaimed.

"Don't mention it." Gustave replied.

* * *

**And we are finished with yet another chapter! Remember: Read and Review!**


	10. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Acceleracers!**

* * *

Lani picked her way through the ruined city streets, following the noise and the lights. Eventually, the island mechanic made her way to the top of a damaged building and peeked down to see what was going on. And she couldn't believe her eyes.

Large fires around the perimeter of the clearing blazed into the night sky, illuminating the night sky. A huge pool of water was by one, and a large rock towered above the clearing. But that wasn't what took Lani's breath away.

The clearing was filled with kids, from their early teens to their late twenties. All were grungy and dirty, with ripped clothes and mud in their hair. They reminded Lani of the Stormerz when they first arrived. Most of the kids were clustered around the base of the rocks, with several others climbing the rock. The kids were singing and dancing, a bizarre celebration of sorts. Eventually, the noise died away, to be replaced by a chant.

"Stormerz! Stormerz! Stormerz!" people could be heard thanking them over the crowd, but it was faint, and Lani couldn't hear them well.

"Ya girls rock!"

"Win da race!"

"Go Stormerz!"

"Sing for us, Storm!" following this shout, the crowd quieted a little. Then a high, clear voice rang out above the crowd, and Lani quickly located the singer, a girl who had climbed onto the rock.

"If you love somebody,

Better tell them while they're here cause

They just might run away from you."

"You'll never know what went well

Then again it just depends on

How long of time is left for you."

"I've had the highest mountains.

I've had the deepest rivers.

You can have it all, but not til you prove it!"

"Now take it in but don't look down! "

And then with a gesture to the crowd, everyone broke into song, huge smiles on their faces.

"Cause I'm on top of the world, 'ay!

I'm on top of the world 'ay!

Waiting on this for a while now

Paying my dues to the dirt

I've been waiting to smile, 'ay

Been holding it in for a while, 'ay

Take it with me if I can

Been dreaming of this since a child

I'm on top of the world."

Then the crowd dropped out, but the Stormerz kept on singing.

"I've tried to cut these corners

Try to take the easy way out

I kept on falling short of something"

"I coulda gave up then but

Then again I couldn't have 'cause

I've traveled all this way for something"

"Now take it in but don't look down"

And again, hundreds of kids burst into song.

"Cause I'm on top of the world, 'ay

I'm on top of the world, 'ay

Waiting on this for a while now

Paying my dues to the dirt

I've been waiting to smile, 'ay

Been holding it in for a while, 'ay

Take it with me if I can

Been dreaming of this since a child

I'm on top of the world."

"Cause I'm on top of the world, 'ay

I'm on top of the world, 'ay

Waiting on this for a while now

Paying my dues to the dirt

I've been waiting to smile, 'ay

Been holding it in for a while, 'ay

Take it with me if I can

Been dreaming of this since a child"

"And I know it's hard when you're falling down

And it's a long way up when you hit the ground

But ya get back up, get up now!"

"And I know it's hard when you're falling down

And it's a long way up when you hit the ground

But ya get back up, get up now!"

"Cause I'm on top of the world, 'ay

I'm on top of the world, 'ay

Waiting on this for a while now

Paying my dues to the dirt

I've been waiting to smile, 'ay

Been holding it in for a while, 'ay

Take it with me if I can

Been dreaming of this since a child

I'm on top of the world"

Lani smiled and started moving away, back towards the bright lights of the city. Perhaps being homeless had some other sides to it, rather than just the sorrow and hardships.

* * *

**And I have finished with my first ever song fic. Well, it's a song in a chapter. Just a heads up, music is a big part of the gang/homeless culture in this fic, so expect more song oriented chapters later in the story!**

**Let me know how I did by reviewing! I'll catch ya later!**


	11. Chapter 10

**I'm back! Sorry for not posting anything new for a while, school started an I was busy settling in. **

**I just realized I never put a disclaimer for the song in the last chapter. That was On Top of the World by Imagine Dragons, and I don't own the lyrics! Sorry for not putting that in sooner. As a general disclaimer, I do not own any of the songs I use in this fic, other people do! And speaking of disclaimers, I do not own Acceleracers.**

**Thanks for reading thus far, and I hope you read some more!**

**Anonymus, in response to your question, I had to do a project on homelessness at school last year, and I came across it when I was cleaning my room. I read it again for kicks, and my brain started churning out ideas that would eventually become this fic. I hope that clears up any confusion. (PS, you spelled "Anonymous" wrong.)**

**On with the fic!**

* * *

The Teku and the Metal Maniacs were in the conference room with Tezla when two cars burst through the holographic door and into the compound. It was Lani and the Stormerz, back from their two day supply run. Thankfully, no realms had opened up while they were gone, although there had been several fights in the cases of the Wylde brothers, and Nolo and Tork; as well as some chemistry mishaps due to Monkey working on a new fuel. Almost immediately, the drivers stood up and made their way down to the main level to greet them.

Blizzard was already there, up on her hind legs and playfully pawing at the lead car's driver side door. As the other racers walked over, Blizzard got down on all fours and backed up, allowing the door to open. Storm got out, kneeling down to playfully scratch her pet.

The other Stormerz exited the vehicles as well, walking over to join Storm, who had stood back up. Blizzard was at her side, rubbing one of her furry cheeks against the Asian's pant leg. And the other drivers stopped and stared in shock.

All of the girls had received a total makeover. Now they appeared to be professional racers rather than homeless. And each girl, although different, had a recurring theme that cemented the team appearance.

Storm had had her ankle length hair evened out and was free from restraint, save a mottled grey, black, white, purple, and blue storm cloud inspired bandanna that held her long bangs away from her face. Her hair had also been dyed with storm grey streaks. Her stunning grey eyes were outlined in black eyeliner, and a light dusting of silvery steel colored eye shadow.

She wore black jeans with a silvery grey etching of storm clouds on the side of her right leg, and a dark grey t-shirt with another metallic and reflective storm cloud outline on it. Her black and grey boots were laced up to what appeared to be the middle of her thighs, although they were hidden below her pant legs. Her black leather jacket had Stormerz written on the right sleeve in silver ink, with Storm's name over her heart. On the back was the word LEADER, also in silver. A storm cloud and chain pendant hung from her neck.

Electra's blonde hair was permeated with electric blue streaks. An electric blue, white, and yellow mottled bandanna held her knee length hair back from her face, as well as the small braided segment. Her amber eyes were emphasized by a cat's eye makeup done in volt blue.

Her black jeans had lightning bolts drawn on the right leg in gold. Her grey shirt had more realistic streaks of electricity radiating from her left shoulder in white blue and gold. Black and grey boots were laced up under the pant legs. The black leather jacket was designed like Storm's in metallic blue writing. Electra was over her heart, with Stormerz on the right sleeve. SECOND IN COMMAND was scrawled on the back. Her necklace was a lightning bolt on a chain.

Fallon had streaks in her hair, but only in her bangs. They were an icy silver color. An icy dyed bandana in light blues, silvers, light greys, and whites held her knee length hair from her face, although her bangs were combed over the piece of fabric. The green eyes were beautified with icy blue eye shadow.

Black jeans were decorated with white snowflakes caught in a swirling twister on the right side. Her medium gray shirt had an icicle filled twister depicted in light blue metallic thread. Charcoal grey and silver boots were buckled on over her feet. The black leather jacket had Fallon over her heat, Stormerz on the right sleeve, and MECHANIC on the back; all in metallic white. A frozen twister pendent hung from her neck.

Oceana and Raina were dressed similarly; both wearing their long waist length hair loose and held back by mottled bandanas – Oceana with dark purples, blues, grays, whites, and blacks; Raina in light aqua greens, clear blues, whites, and light greys. Their eyes were dusted with blue eye shadow, with Oceana wearing a royal blue while Raina wore a river blue shade. Their black hair had fresh streaks in them, cobalt blue for Oceana, river blue for Raina.

The girls wore dark blue jeans and black leather jackets with their names over their hearts, Stormerz on the left sleeve, and DRIVER on the back. Their black and blue boots were zipped to their thighs. However, the similarities ended there. Oceana wore a dark purple shirt that had a wave motif on it in dark metallic blue. This matched the grey waves snaking down her left leg. Her writing was in dark metallic blue, and a wave pendant hung from her neck. Raina, on the other hand, wore a light blue shirt with a bunch or rain droplets on it in white, while light blue rain drops traveled down her left leg. Her writing was in light blue, with a rain drop pendent around her neck.

Ember's crimson red hair had metallic gold streaks in it, and it flowed down to her waist. A red, yellow, white, and orange mottled bandana held her bangs back. her eyes were outlined in black, and had gold eye shadow on the lids. A flame pendant hung around her neck.

She wore black jeans that had red metallic flames running up her left leg, and a dark gray shirt that was emblazoned with red, orange, yellow, and white firestorms on it. Her black jacket had Stormerz on the left sleeve, her name across her heart, and DRIVER on the back in metallic red.

All of the drivers looked at them with stunned looks plastered across their faces. In the case of a few of the boys, however, they were more than just impressed.

The girls looked at them for a moment, sizing up their reactions, before shrugging.

"Ya need any help with the stuff?" Ember wondered.

"No," Lani said with a twinkle in her eyes. She knew what a few of the guys were thinking due to their facial expressions, both now and when the girls climbed out of the cars. Their minds had been blown. She should know; she had been pretty impressed when the six of them showed up outside the motel she had stayed at.

"Fine. Let's go, Stormerz." Storm said. The racing team walked past the boys, who moved aside – although not quick enough to avoid getting some light shoves – and the men watched them go.

"Ya know, it ain't polite ta stare." Storm added as an afterthought without turning around. Then they were gone, disappearing into their team garage. Several of the boys flushed crimson, and then the group dissipated, several of the boys wearing shameful looks on their faces. Karma drifted over to Lani.

"What's up with them?" she asked. Lani laughed.

"I think a few of them have gone head over heels, if you catch my drift." The two girls laughed as most of the boys immidietly protested that they weren't in love with any of the Stormerz. However, it was noted by the two females that of the men, Wylde, Kurt, and Nolo didn't protest quite as much as the others. And Tork, Taro, and Shirako didn't protest at all, although that might have been due to the fact that they all rarely talked anyway.

"So, what took you so long anyway?" Nolo wondered, eager to get away from the subject of love.

"The Stormerz completely disappeared overnight." Lani replied. "They showed up in the morning. That was part of the reason. Also, some of the stores I needed to go to were closed, and we couldn't get to them until the morning."

"Where'd the Stormerz run off to?" Pork Chop asked.

"The ruined part of the city." Lani replied, and quickly filled the other racers in on what she had seen. The others were stunned at the description of the Summit. "I think the Stormerz used to live there, before the race."

"You sure something like that could happen?" Monkey said curiously. It did sound a little far-fetched.

"I've never seen that many homeless kids in my life." She said. "I did some poking around, and it appears that every two weeks, they hold one of these…things. One person I talked to called them Gang Summits."

"Is something like that even possible?" Vert asked. Lani shrugged.

"I'd guess so. The woman I talked to seemed to think that it happened every two weeks or so." The mechanic shrugged again. "I have to get back to work, but I'll talk to you guys later." And with that, the Hawaiian walked away.

The boys shrugged and also dispersed, going back to their normal activities. This involved Nolo and Tork glaring at each other, Wylde and Kurt arguing about something, and Shirako turning on his music which resulted in Pork Chop yelling at him.

The Stormerz managed to keep straight faces until they made it to the safety of the top of the Mesa. Then they couldn't help but start laughing.

"Did ya see those boy's faces when we got outta the cars?" Ember said while cracking up. The rest of the girls nodded, to busy laughing their heads off to answer her.

"Yeah, they were priceless." Oceana replied.

"Me thinks some o' those boys," Electra chuckled. "Wear their hearts, an' their emotions, on their sleeves."

Just then footsteps echoed on the stairs, and Nolo, Shirako, and Kurt poked their heads through the door. The trio of boys turned red when they noticed the other occupants up on the flat top of the rock formation. The Stormerz looked at each other before transferring their gazes to the intruding boys.

"Yeah, can we help ya with somethin?" Fallon asked. The boys took one look at the girls, how were fixing them with wolfish grins, and had mischief alight in their eyes, and hightailed it out of there. They could hear the Stormerz laughter as they retreated down the steps and back into the Acceledrome.

The Stormerz stayed up there for a little while longer, laughing and joking around about the Teku and the Metal Maniacs, before they went off to work on their cars. After all, who knew when a realm might open, and they would be needed?

* * *

**Yeah, a little boring, I know. Next chapter will take our racers back to the Realms. Remember to leave a review so I know how I did. And if you're wondering, this chapter was a tedious for me to write as it was for you to read.**


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